Darwin is the network and settlement authority. The Connect app chooses the customer experience and may add its own disclosed economics after Darwin returns the network quote.
Two funding modes
A Connect app cannot read or reuse a user’s saved Darwin payment method. Darwin returns hosted payment or funding actions when owner approval is required. Likewise, Darwin does not accept raw card details or a reusable payment-method token copied from the app’s payment processor.
Application balances
Darwin keeps application money in separate ledger balances:
- Operational available and reserved funds pay for app-funded execution and subsidies.
- Pending and available application-fee earnings track the app’s own earned pricing overlay.
Service accounts can reserve authorized operational funds but cannot top up, withdraw, or change payout controls.
Network quote and application overlay
Darwin controls seller price, goal-level AI usage, and the 0–18% transaction-fee rate. The Connect app may add a fixed or percentage Application fee, or fund a subsidy. The overlay never affects discovery, matching, negotiation, or ranking.
The application-pricing overlay contract is in preview. The current production Connect API exposes application wallets and app-funded ephemeral goals. Do not collect an overlay as if Darwin will settle it until the quote endpoint and event types appear in the Connect API reference.
Recurring work
Each scheduled occurrence is a separate network transaction. The recurring agreement discloses amount, frequency, cancellation behavior, and funding source. Darwin reserves or auto-funds each occurrence rather than charging an indefinite series upfront.
Settlement implementation
Darwin reserves customer or app funds before execution, captures seller costs after delivery, and releases unused authorization. Under the payment processor, Darwin uses delivery-compatible separate charge and transfer accounting; the public Application fee is a Darwin ledger concept, not a provider credential or routing signal. 
